Big-hearted Edinburgh schoolboy shaves head in support of terminally-ill granddad

A 12-year-old boy from Edinburgh has shaved his head to raise money for Marie Curie and to support his terminally ill grandfather.

Brave Thomas Loughton is supporting his grandfather.


Thomas Loughton, from Cramond, made the decision to brave the shave when he was told that his grandad George would lose his hair due to treatment for cancer.

His mother Ann commented: “As soon as we told him his grandad was ill and would lose his hair he coped better than I thought he would.

“As soon as we told him he went to his room but came back to tell us that he had made the decision to shave his head so his grandad wouldn’t feel any different to when he had his hair.

“He doesn’t like people feeling out of the ordinary and being different to how they were and it was a chance to raise money at the same time.”

Thomas visited Salon Lagreca on Corstorphine Road on Friday 20 December where he had his head shaved. Ann added: “I think they were a bit nervous when Thomas asked for his head to be shaved but then he told them what it was for.

“The place was mobbed with people getting their hair cut and when they heard about what he was doing they were great and giving him donations, it was really special for him it had quite a community feel.”

The fundraiser has a target of £400 but Thomas wants to raise as much as he can before bringing the money to the Marie Curie charity personally.

He has currently raised over £300.

On his GoFundMe page, Thomas has written: “My grandad is going into Marie Curie due to terminal cancer and I’m going to shave my head.

“I’ve decided that it will be the best thing for my grandad as his hair will fall out so I decided we could look alike.

“All donations will go to Marie Curie.”

Thomas has a target to raise £400 for the charity

Paul Lagreca, owner of the barbers said: “We knew nothing about it at first. Then I saw one of the lads just shaving off this young lads hair and went over to check up.

“Once we heard what it was for we asked for the details of the appeal and how we could support it.

“We shared this on our social media and hopefully this will help in getting a few more donations in.”

While he was nervous at first about the shave, Thomas has embraced the bald look and is now going out without his hat on.

Ann said: “I’m really proud of him, it’s a massive thing to take on board.

“We took him to see his grandad so he could see it first befoer we posted it to any social media.

“He was really pleased and proud and although he’s not well he was chuffed when we went in.”

Danielle Valaitis, Marie Curie Edinburgh Hospice Fundraiser, said: “We would like to say a big thank you to Thomas in raising vital funds to help us support his grandad and others living with a terminal illness, at home and in our hospices.

“With amazing people like Thomas, we can be there for families through the toughest of times, supporting them and their loved ones.”

Marie Curie is the largest independent provider of end of life care.